Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the nineteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation and thirteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $262.32.

NSC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded Norfolk Southern from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $185.00 to $175.00 in a report on Monday, January 29th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Provence Wealth Management Group acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 662.5% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Operose Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock traded up $1.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $235.55. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,072,692 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,327,953. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern has a twelve month low of $183.09 and a twelve month high of $263.66. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $249.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $233.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.32 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern will post 11.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods in the United States. The company transports agriculture, forest, and consumer products comprising soybeans, wheat, corn, fertilizers, livestock and poultry feed, food products, food oils, flour, sweeteners, ethanol, lumber and wood products, pulp board and paper products, wood fibers, wood pulp, beverages, and canned goods; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products comprising crude oil, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, sand, and natural gas liquids; metals and construction materials, such as steel, aluminum products, machinery, scrap metals, cement, aggregates, minerals, clay, transportation equipment, and military-related products; and automotive, including finished motor vehicles and automotive parts, as well as coal.